although the obama administration did request and employ some modest funding in the recovery act and has proposed an infrastructure bank and talked extensively and i think sincerely about the need for investment, what has been lacking has been a specific concrete proposal from either party to address infrastructure financing in america. while the political maneuvering has secured here in washington, the gap in the highway trust fund has been growing and conditions of our roads, bridges and transit systems have been deteriorating. this puts america at a competitive disadvantage, complicates the movement of goods and people and contributes to congestion and pollution. at the same time, the needs grow, the resources are in significant decline. the gas tax has not been increased since the clinton administration 20 years ago. the future prospects are even worse. demands are increasing and deferred maintenance takes its toll while we watch the bottom fall out of the highway trust fund. we've seen a slowdown in revenue due to the near collapse of the economy, a shift in driving patterns whi